Aisle of You, Craig
by DigitalAlice
Summary: Tweek can and will be brave. Also, please see inside for important author note.


Hi everyone.

I hope you've enjoyed reading the daily Creek fics as much as I've enjoyed writing them. However, it's come to my attention that I'm not actually very good at keeping Tweek in-character, and I can definitely see that when looking back on my writing now. It's one of my personal pet peeves when reading a fic if the characters are not realistic to the source material, so I understand how frustrating that can be.

Unfortunately, I'm just not creative enough to come up with paranoid-induced tangents that Tweek often has in the show. I rarely write about him worrying about random weird crap because I can't come up with any! I gave it a shot in The Miracle Cure with his thinking that guinea pigs were holding grudges against him, and it felt forced and silly to me, so I didn't try much after that and focused on his anxiety instead. I understand that this means I'm sacrificing part of who Tweek is and therefore he's not in-character in my stories, and for that I apologise.

I did some experimenting today to see if I could improve my writing on that front but I'm struggling to make any significant changes, and feeling rather disheartened. So I'm going to stop writing Creek fics for a while since I'd rather be able to produce good-quality, in-character pieces and I don't feel I can do that.

Thank you for all your kind reviews and please enjoy this last Creek fic from me.

Much love.

* * *

Tweek practiced saying it in front of the mirror.

'I love you. I love you… I love you, I love you, I-love-you-I-love-you-aisle-of-you-aisle-of-you-aghhhhhh!'

Tweek jumped up and down on the spot in terror. There was no _way_ he could say it out loud to Craig if he couldn't even get it right on his own. He looked around at the school restroom miserably. Why did he find it so hard to summon courage?

Craig had been the one to reinitiate their relationship. He'd also been the one to propose an official first date, and the first to kiss him. He was always being the brave one, and Tweek loved that, but now it was time for a change.

They'd never told each other they loved each other, but their relationship had reached the point where words failed to express how they felt. They would laugh together or be cuddling up and their eyes would meet, and the words _I love you_ threatened to burst out of him. But instead they would say _you're amazing_ or _I really, really like you_. Safe things to say.

Tweek didn't want to be safe anymore.

He wanted to be honest, even if it was reckless.

The school bell rang as Tweek was leaving the restroom. He spent the afternoon classes repeating the mantra in his head: _Craig, I love you. I love you, Craig._ Such simple words. But the fear of Craig's reaction, and possibly his rejection, stung in Tweek's chest.

After school, Tweek started walking home in a daze. Why couldn't he be brave like Craig?

A hand caught his, startling him. Craig was walking beside him, intertwining their fingers. He glanced down at Tweek.

'You've been quiet today,' he said.

'S-sorry, Craig.'

'Don't be. It was a comment, not a criticism.'

They walked in silence, Tweek thinking the words in his head. It shouldn't be so hard to say. He felt the words with every fibre of his being. Nothing else described the strength of his affection for Craig. These feelings weren't mere friendship, and it was more than just thinking Craig was funny or amazing.

It was love.

Tweek stopped walking, and Craig turned towards him. He felt his face turn hot, and looked down at his feet.

'C-Craig…'

Craig sighed, gazing up at the sky.

'I want to make things easy for you,' Craig said. 'I always want to.'

'Oh…?'

Craig looked him straight in the eyes with a hard expression.

'But I can't this time. I want you to say it first, and I can't make it easy for you by taking that away from you.'

Wait, what?

Say it first? Did that mean Craig felt the same way?

'You want to, right?' Craig smiled at him. 'You want to be the first to say it.'

Tweek nodded, and Craig wrapped his arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

'Craig, I…' Tweek rested his head against Craig's shoulder. 'I love you.'

Craig let go of him, stepping back in surprise with a cunning smile on his lips.

'Oh, that's not what I thought you were talking about at all,' he said, but his amusement turned to regret as soon as he saw Tweek's look of horror.

'I'm kidding, I was kidding!' Craig stepped close again and took Tweek's alarmed face in his hands. He kissed Tweek softly, and then kissed his cheeks, then his jaw, his forehead, and the tip of his nose.

'I was just messing with you babe, I'm sorry,' Craig laughed. 'I love you too.'

'Jerk,' Tweek said shakily, his heart fluttering at the soft way Craig spoke, and the warmth of his hands.

'I'm your jerk,' Craig said with a grin. 'Besides, it's not my fault you're so cute when you're gullible. It makes me want to tease you more.'

They started walking side by side again, and Tweek tried to stop the butterflies in his stomach.

'Craig?'

'Yeah babe?' Craig squeezed his hand.

'Thanks for letting me say it first.'


End file.
